Mountains. Glaciers. Deep coastal fjords. Norway is natural, picture-perfection. Dubbed one of the happiest countries in the world, we wonder if it’s because Norwegians spend a lot of time getting active in nature. We can’t wait to find that out for ourselves.
That’s why we’re excited to talk with one of our Fit & Forest Ambassadors, Michael Clark, American-born fitness trainer now living, training, and working in his relatively new home of Kongsberg, Norway.
Hi Mike, tell us a little about your background?
Hey Nicky, well I would first like to say thanks for having me on this weeks blog!
My background is in Health and Fitness and I have been in this field for almost 10 years now with most of it being in New York City. I have been a personal trainer for the entire length of the 10 years and truly love helping people become healthier and happier. After my first few years working as a personal trainer in NYC, I decided I wanted to help people on a bigger scale and focus more on health and wellness, not just fitness exercise. I soon stumbled upon an amazing onsite corporate health & wellness company which gave me the opportunity to help people on a much bigger scale.
I spent about 5 years working in this field and it was very rewarding because I was able to connect and help so many people through health & wellness programming. Then one day, I met a girl...that happened to be from Norway visiting for a wedding. 2 years later, I had picked up my things and moved to Norway to be with her and start a family.
Not soon after moving to Norway, I made contact with a Norwegian professional basketball organization called the Kongsberg Miners and was hired as their strength & conditioning coach. This was a new field within fitness that I never really invested a lot of time studying about previously, but I had played basketball most of my entire life so I had a lot of knowledge about the sport itself. I took this amazing opportunity to learn and develop and, along the way, developed a passion for working with athletes.
Kongsberg Miners! Heard they won last year’s National Championship. And the two years before that. Congrats!
Thanks! It was an exciting first season with the Miners as they won their 2nd National Championship in a row. My role with the team was to work with the players and develop individualized strength/mobility/conditioning programs for them as well as conduct weekly team strength/conditioning sessions. We were well on our way to a 3rd consecutive national championship (26-1) before the coronavirus ended our season just as the playoffs had begun. The guys were quite heart broken because they worked so hard on and off the court and battled through quite a few injuries as a team for it all to be stopped short. But we all understood the reason for this and we’re all happy that the government made the decision they did to shut down sports.
You made a move that most people only dream about. How is it living in your new homeland?
That’s a great question actually but I would say overall it was a great move for me to make at this that time in my life as I was looking for more than just working 12+ hours a day with not much time for a social life outside of the weekends. After living here for almost 2 years, I feel that Ii have a better balance between social and work life which reduces a lot of stress. I think in general most people who live in Norway have this balance and because of it are very happy.
Tell us a little about the culture. What’s the biggest difference between life in New York City and life in Kongsberg, Norway? What has been the biggest culture shock?
I think the biggest difference is the work/life balance. Norwegian culture is very laid back and things move much slower (in many ways) here compared to NYC. Work life in particular is very different here in Norway. Most employers in Norway look to “hire for life” which means if you get a good full time job then you are set for life and it is very difficult to lose your job. The reason for that is because Norwegians are paid very well no matter the job you have so it would cost an employer a great deal of money to rehire and re-train someone. In New York, that’s quite the opposite as there are performance metrics and requirements to maintain your job and you can easily be replaced if your work is not satisfactory. I think this sense of work security is a big reason to why most Norwegians enjoy a happy life here. The biggest culture shock for me would be the lack of nightlife or social life in the city I live in. It practically does not exist on the weekdays in fact. Most people go home after work during the weekdays and even on the weekend’s most people are more inclined to visit family and friends at their homes or head to their cabins in the mountains rather than going to a “Boozy Brunch” or a karaoke night. Very different social life than New York City!
Norway consistently comes in as one of the healthiest countries in the world, having a low BMI overall as a country (3 points lower than the US), and a high life expectancy (4 years longer). As a fitness professional, what’s the biggest difference you see between the two countries, as it relates?
I think there are 3 big differences that result in this healthier lifestyle in Norway as it relates to BMI.
The availability/accessibility of fast food, which if you had to choose the biggest reason for Norway's healthier lifestyle, this would be it. Even in major cities like Oslo (Norway) there are very limited American fast food influences and of those that do exist here they are not very accessible for most people because of limited locations. I believe the Norwegian government has a hand in this as they encourage consumption of healthier foods in general.
High prices on meat & alcohol. Again a government controlled decision that deters overconsumption of meat and alcohol which as most people know that both of these can cause health problems and definitely one's BMI.
The active life most Norwegians take advantage of. Norwegians really value their outdoor activity and it is somewhat of a cultural norm. Norwegians embrace nature and love to spend their time out on a ski trip or long hike with friends or family. I realize that was 3 but the all have a tremendous impact on leading a healthier life.
Norway consistently ranks in the top five happiest countries in the world. What would you attribute this to?
I would say the biggest contribution to this is the active social lives of Norwegians, especially in nature. Even in times when some parts of Norway receive only a few hours of light in a day (during winter) people take advantage of it and go for long walks or hikes in the woods which for most Norwegians is easily accessible.
We’ve heard of a term called Koeslig. What is this?
Haha, yes it's a commonly used word here in Norway. My best translation to its true meaning is “cozy” although I believe koselig has a slightly broader meaning. The word koselig is used much more frequently in Norwegian language than “cozy” does in English (my opinion). The English language has a lot more descriptive words to describe a moment/occasion.
Considering all of these great things, we haven’t even touched on Norway’s natural beauty. What stands out to you as the top natural appeal of your new home?
True! Well as many people may guess, it’s the mountains and many fjords Norway has. In my experience, Norway has some of the most beautiful mountain views and overall displays of nature as a whole than I have ever seen elsewhere. Norway is country full of mountains which means there is always a great place to enjoy a good hike and beautiful view.
Favorite Hike?
My favorite hike so far was at kjeragbolten in western Norway just outside the city of Stavanger. It was a challenging full day hike but it had so many beautiful views along the way.
What’s do we have to try when we go on our Fit Trip there (your favorite Norwegian cuisine, sightseeing, shopping, etc)?
If we are talking about food, I would say Norwegian chocolate (Freia brand) is a MUST try. You will never enjoy chocolate in the US ever again, lol. I send chocolates to my family in the states during the holidays because they love it so much. Also, I would have to say seafood in general is quite amazing and is always extremely fresh (especially if you live on the coast). Lastly, Norwegians make a very special type of cheese that they call “brunost” which translates to “Brown Cheese”. It's a very popular Norwegian cheese that has a sweet taste (either you hate it or love it) and I think it is a must try. You must also experience a view from one of Norways fjords, like you would find on your hike to Preikestolen, which is also in western Norway. I would advise on not planning on doing a lot of shopping as Norway is a very expensive place to shop for clothes, shoes etc..
Okay, so no shopping but we’re really excited to hear about all the rest that Norway has to offer. We have no doubt that a Norway Fit Trip will be a huge success.
